


The elements of blood and breath

by baskervilleain



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: And it's AMAZING, M/M, Post-TWOTL, WIP, but of course because they're them some fucked up stuff has to happen, they can finally show their love to each other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-10
Updated: 2017-10-09
Packaged: 2019-01-15 12:36:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12321225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baskervilleain/pseuds/baskervilleain
Summary: If he was honest with himself, Will already knew this; still, hearing Hannibal say it aloud brought a rush of warmth to his face. He thought of everything he’d done for Hannibal, and everything Hannibal had done for him- the betrayals of the FBI, of each other, the years spent apart, the oceans crossed to find each other, the wounds, the scars, the changes. It was all a part of who he was now, a part of Hannibal.





	The elements of blood and breath

**Author's Note:**

> this is a fic i started a year ago when attempting nanowrama for the first (and only) time. there are only two chapters written so far, but if anyone expresses an interest in hearing more of the story i might resume work on it.

            Pain. Blinding pain. Pain everywhere- his shoulder, his jaw, his legs, arms, eyes, mind. Pain was his existence and then- nothing. A blackness so complete he sensed, deep in that reptilian base of his brain that longed for blood and heat and life, that death could not be far away. But this too faded, and for a long period all he knew was nothingness.

            Will woke slowly, unwillingly, felt his consciousness stitching itself back together in new, jagged patterns. He was reluctant to relinquish the soft cushion of darkness cradling his body. With the waking world, he knew, would come more pain. A quiet exhalation nearby informed him, however, that he would not be able to feign unconsciousness for much longer. Letting out a sigh, he allowed his freshly wakened mind to leach back into the stagnant regions of his body. A low sigh escaped him as he recognized the dull ache in his limbs, the sharp, taut stretch of his chest as he breathed, the sting in his cheek as he began to test the muscles in his face.

            “Hello, Will.” The warm, familiar voice flooded over Will, enveloping his mind. Memories began to bubble back to the surface of his consciousness, vibrant and violently intense. He watched them passively, remembering the dragon and the escape and the fall replay in his head, yet choosing to remain in the present moment, he opened his eyes at last.

            “Hannibal,” he sighed, a smile just touching his lips. The presence at his side shifted closer, until Hannibal’s face, angled with shadows, entered his range of view.

            “I must admit it is good to see you conscious once again,” Hannibal murmured, smiling in turn at Will’s evident gladness to see him. “I feared the FBI might have taken your life at last.”

            Will chuckled hoarsely, and quickly grimaced at the lances of pain that bolted through his ribcage. “The FBI? I was under the impression we’d agreed that my fate was in my own hands from now on.”

            Hannibal’s face darkened slightly, the smile fading into an intense gaze. “Yes, we had come to such terms. That is, until you decided to hide our trail by flinging us into the sea. At that point, your life and death was a direct result of the threat of your imprisonment. Our imprisonment.” Will met Hannibal’s stare, reading within those [amber???] eyes a deep fear, a dread that must have been welling within him since they had arrived, whatever the place they were in was. “You worried about me.” Not a question, a statement of truth. Hannibal blinked slowly, eyes softening, and appeared to make an effort to batten down the emotions Will could so easily extract from his expression. “Come here, Hannibal.” Will extended an arm toward him, taking his hand and drawing him yet nearer to where he lay. Laboriously, Will lifted his head and drew Hannibal’s face towards his own, a hand looped behind his neck, to lean his forehead against Hannibal’s, their breath mingling together in the all but nonexistent space between them. “I’m here with you. You brought me to life, to this life. I’m not going anywhere.”

            “Very well, Will. Forgive me for doubting you. You are everything to me, and I would not have you dying without me, not yet.” Hannibal breezed through his words quickly, but Will could feel the desperate truth ringing in his words, in his veins. “Just like you are to me,” he replied, his voice straining to rise above a whisper from his traumatized chest. Noticing this, Hannibal drew back and gently pressed Will back until he was again lying completely on the bed, eyes already heavy again with exhaustion. “Rest now. We will have time later to talk of everything that we wish, but for now the best thing you can do is recover your strength.” He leaned down over Will once again, softly pressing his lips to his forehead. As he stood to leave Will to sleep, a slight panic filled Will’s weary consciousness at the thought of Hannibal leaving him. “No, Hannibal, stay. Stay with me. Please.” Already he was fading into sleep, and the last sensation of which he was aware before entering his dreams was the warmth of a body sliding close to him on the bed and holding him securely in strong arms.

 

 

            When again his eyelids flicked open, soft light that appeared to resemble morning had filled the room in which he lay. He swallowed thickly, noticing that his throat burned slightly with each breath. Salt water must have gotten into his mouth, his lungs when they fell. Before he could even turn his head to begin the search for a possible source of water, Hannibal was there. He held the rim of a cup to Will’s lips, tipping cool, fresh water into his mouth. Will drank greedily, gulping the water so fast that he nearly choked and began coughing, which in turn racked his chest with bright flashes pain. Once this subsided, Will tilted his head towards Hannibal and smiled wanly, well aware of his own wretched state. 

            “I’m glad I’ve got you here to take care of me,” he rasped. Hannibal returned the smile.

            “You are certainly capable of taking care of yourself, Will. I relish the chance to look after you now and then.” Will almost chuckled at this, but stopped himself before he could jar his ribs with the motion.

            “If I’m so capable of looking after myself, why is it that you always end up coming to my rescue?” He paused, noting the amusement lighting Hannibal’s eyes. Of course- he should have realized. “The situations in which I need rescuing tend to be designed by you, don’t they?”

            “I wouldn’t quite go that far, though I cannot deny that I enjoy observing your reactions to such situations.”

            “That you do. I’m not your experiment, Hannibal.”

            Hannibal tensed slightly, and Will sensed that he’d awakened something intense and deeply meaningful within him. “No you are not. You have always been much more than an experiment to me. You, Will, are my becoming, as much as I am yours.” Will met his eyes, seeing within them the truth of his words, the heat of the blood pulsing through the capillaries within his eyes, the beast within him shifting its fearsome bulk to encompass the monster within himself. “I know. I know that you are, that I… am. That _we are._ ” He extended his arm, bringing his hand to rest on Hannibal’s cheek, fingers brushing just beneath his eyes. Hannibal closed his eyes, exhaling slowly before placing his own hand on Will’s and entwining their fingers.

            Will allowed himself to merely exist in the moment for as long as he could, feeling more relaxed than he had in the past three years. After a time of just _existing_ with Hannibal, he inhaled deeply before beginning the inevitable conversation.  

            “So why aren’t you bedridden and half-conscious?” Hannibal grinned, opening his eyes, and returned Will’s hand to his bed. “You went over the edge first- you broke the surface of the water.” His face darkened slightly. “You don’t need to sacrifice yourself for me. Or because of me. There is nothing that I fear more than your loss.”

            If he was honest with himself, Will already knew this; still, hearing Hannibal say it aloud brought a rush of warmth to his face. He thought of everything he’d done for Hannibal, and everything Hannibal had done for him- the betrayals of the FBI, of each other, the years spent apart, the oceans crossed to find each other, the wounds, the scars, the changes. It was all a part of who he was now, a part of Hannibal. “I don’t know where- or what- I would be without you, Hannibal. I don’t think I could survive losing you.”

            Hannibal seemed somewhat taken aback by this confession. “Nor I you,” he eventually said, for the first time seeming somewhat unsure of himself.

 


End file.
